Article April 27, 1998 Issue

Yield to God's will, not to peer pressure

How to resist the pull of the crowd.

By Ralph W. Emerson

What is considered "the thing to do" is sometimes just the thing that leads to misery, even to disaster. But how do you deal with pressure from others to do something that you feel is wrong?

The way out of peer pressure is to understand that God's will, not human will, is in control, and that His presence and power preclude any other real influence or control. This understanding releases us from negative pressure. Enticements whirling around us do not have power to take away our composure, clarity of thought, and judgment, for these are irrevocable, spiritual gifts from God. So we can refuse to yield to suggestions to do something that doesn't feel right, and quietly turn to God for guidance.

We don't need personal strength or will to do this. All right action is under God's control, and as His image, we reflect this divine control in wise self-control. This self-control is a built-in element of our being. It is not a floating notion that can flee away just when we need it. No person can interfere with our expression of it. Steadiness, responsibility, and self-government are permanent, God-given qualities that belong to each of us. They are completely tangible to spiritual sense. They are stable.

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A man of faith
April 27, 1998
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